For the designer Julien Macdonald, whose show at London Fashion Week takes
place on Saturday, a stay in the Seychelles provided inspiration for a
future collection

When I finished Strictly Come Dancing, I so needed a holiday. I hadn’t realised how exhausting months of rehearsals and shows would be, or how much I would be asked about it. Every time I walked down the street, someone would stop me. By the end, all I wanted to do was escape, recharge my batteries and move on to the next chapter.

Normally, I don’t go in for relaxing beach holidays. Because my father insisted I join the Scouts, I learnt as a boy to love the outdoors and adventure, so when I go away I have to be active; I just can’t sit about and do nothing.

Last year I climbed Kilimanjaro – which I wouldn’t recommend to anyone; it was probably the toughest thing I have ever done. This year I decided to try something slightly less dangerous: to learn to dive on Fregate Island Private.

The waters around the Seychelles are full of incredibly colourful coral and fish, so Fregate was the perfect place to learn. It was pretty hard work; of my 10 days on the island, four were spent practising diving skills in the water during the day and doing theory at night. It was amazing, though. I love water, and have done since my parents took me as a young boy to the Blue Grotto in Capri. If I were born again, I’m sure I’d be a fish or a merman.

When I wasn’t diving, I was trying other things – such as fishing, which I have never done before. I was a bit scared, to be honest. The rods and hooks were huge, and it was a big boat. But it wasn’t too hard: I caught two yellowfin tuna, a red snapper and a kingfish and that night we ate them as fresh sashimi and sushi. I didn’t kill them myself; it was all a bit bloody for me. But the whole thing was a great experience, and the fish couldn’t have been fresher.

But then, the food was the best I have ever eaten, anywhere. It was without gimmicks, and all organic. Almost everything is grown on the island, from radishes and herbs to bananas and palm hearts, which I fell in love with. I’d never had them before, and they were delicious: really crunchy and fresh.

At every meal, the chefs would surprise us. One night they presented us with a teardrop of ice with a cavity in the middle filled with red liquid: the most delicious cold tomato soup. Then we’d have dishes such as green curried kingfish with mango lassi or Seychelles rock lobster with caramelised lobster and foie gras. And then fabulous puddings such as passion fruit and bitter-chocolate parfait.

Although we ate a lot, because it was organic it didn’t feel unhealthy at all. When I arrived, I promised myself I’d go to the gym. But then I reasoned: why lock yourself in a room, when you can walk and swim surrounded by such beauty? So instead of the gym, I’d go walking early every morning, and see something new – a beautiful coloured bird or bright beetle or blue lizard, or enormous turtles and tortoises. It really was like paradise: wild but not in a scary Jurassic Park way. One morning when I came out of the sea, a turtle followed me, started to dig, and then laid her eggs. It was bizarre. They’re not scared of man at all; some of them you can even feed bananas. When you’re driving your little electric buggy around, you have to keep stopping to let them cross the road. It’s mad: like Fantasy Island.

Although there are 16 villas on the island, you hardly ever see anyone else. Every day I would have my favourite beach, Anse Victorin, all to myself. I could just sit there, with no one else around. It was like being Robinson Crusoe, except with all the luxuries you could ever dream of.

There are little phones hidden in trees all over the island, so wherever you were, you could call your butler and he would bring whatever you wanted. It was so perfect, all I could think was: “Wouldn’t the world be a better place if it was all like this?”

Even getting there was incredibly glamorous. We flew to Dubai, then to the Seychelles, and then we were taken in a little helicopter on to the island, where the staff stood, waving as we landed. It was like being a Hollywood star.

The villas, too, were unbelievably luxurious, and perched over rocks looking towards the sea, so you could walk about naked if you wanted, and no one would know. They were chic, but not overdone: like thatched plantation houses, with dark wood, huge comfy sofas, a fab bed, and enormous bathrooms with a big Jacuzzi bath and showers inside and outside.

Because it’s the sort of place you really need to share, I took my friend Deborah, from Wales, whom I have known most of my life, and had a great time relaxing and chatting and catching up.

On some nights we’d stay in and watch movies. On others we’d go to the Pirate’s Bar – named after the pirates who apparently buried treasure on the beach – and drink fresh fruit cocktails made using coconuts that had grown right there. Then we’d have dinner on the beach, or the restaurant on a cliff edge, or beside a beautiful tree. They even prepared high tea for us one afternoon on a platform at the top of a banyan tree, with unbelievably beautiful views all around.

What Fregate is not is a party island, like Mykonos, or somewhere you go to drink a lot. You go to get high on life. I did lots of thinking, lots of exercise, tried yoga for the first time, watched the sea and had amazing spa treatments using fruits and herbs from the gardens. Because not a single chemical goes into your body, it all feels incredibly healthy. Even the soaps and body oils are home-made.

What is particularly great about the island – especially for a man who is surrounded by fashion – is that no one cares what you wear; it’s not a place where you have to dress up. You can wear the same shorts and T-shirt all week if you like. They encourage you to forget about Western life and the Western world, and to live simply, and to soak in the extraordinary beauty all around.

What that teaches you is to be yourself. I learnt so much from it. I loved being on my own, and having time to look at the trees and the fruit and the birds and creatures and sea. It made me so happy that, when I left, I cried, and I’ve never done that before.

I took lots of pictures and collected drawings and mementoes, so hopefully, one day, I will be inspired to do a Fregate collection.

There are few places with such incredible tropical foliage, fruit and vegetables in such rich colours, or air filled with such intense smells, or food that tastes quite so fresh. I’ve been to some fabulous places: to Pangkor Laut in Malaysia, to Agonda Beach in India, to the Bahamas. And I’ve stayed at the best hotels in the world – including the Ritz in Paris and glamorous newer places such as Soho House in Miami. But there’s nothing quite like Fregate. It really is out of this world.

Julien Macdonald was talking to Lisa Grainger

Julien MacDonald was a guest of Scott Dunn (020 8682 5020; scottdunn.com) and Oetker Collection. A seven-night holiday costs from £11,315 per person all-inclusive, based on two adults sharing, return flight from London and private helicopter transfer from Mahe. Valid for travel before September 30 if booked three months in advance.